


Love as the Morning Dawns

by Llama1412



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-10-12
Updated: 2010-10-12
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:02:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23484997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Llama1412/pseuds/Llama1412
Summary: Arthur was not a morning person.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Kudos: 32





	Love as the Morning Dawns

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on livejournal in 2010. Posted unedited.

Arthur was not a morning person. Merlin found this ironic as the prince was very tetchy about scheduling and being on time and the like. Given the chance, Merlin knew, Arthur could and would happily sleep the day well away. As such, he found it patently unfair that as soon as the birds started calling outside his window, Arthur would shove Merlin unceremoniously out of bed, drag himself upright, and then stagger around like some sort of zombie mutant while Merlin dressed them both and fetched breakfast.

As annoying as it was getting tossed out of bed when he knew they'd both like nothing more than to sleep in, it was worth it for those rare days where Arthur would have no obligations in the morning and would snooze away, even after Merlin awakened. These mornings were always Merlin's favorites, not only because they'd actually get enough sleep for once, but because Arthur insisted that Merlin remain in bed until the Prince himself awoke. So Merlin would lie there, entangled with Arthur, and idly practiced his magic. Such opportunities had, in fact, improved his control over magic, which turned out swell because it didn't take Arthur long to plunge into another life-threatening situation.

When Merlin had first moved into Arthur's chambers, it had been to care for the prat after he'd nearly gotten himself killed again. He hadn't gotten terribly much sleep while he'd been worrying about Arthur and, as a result, may have found himself curled up in bed with the Prince, a little too happy to be there. That would be, of course, the time Arthur finally chose to wake up, leaving Merlin terrified for his life until the Prince got his bearings and rolled over onto Merlin, evidence that he was just as happy about this as Merlin grinding into his hip.

After that, it hadn't really seemed worth the effort to move out. He'd been stuck taking care of Arthur for nearly a week and Arthur was always getting himself into trouble, so it wasn't like it would be very long until Merlin was left taking care of an unconscious Prince again.

The first day Arthur was to return to duty, Merlin rose before him and went about his duties as he usually would, setting out Arthur's clothes and leaving to fetch his breakfast. When he returned, though, Arthur leveled him with a glare, already dressed and looking quite put-out.

"Arthur?" He'd called, reaching out for his master.

Arthur frowned, but allowed Merlin to draw close, cupping his face in his hands as he examined Arthur, trying to determine what was wrong.

Arthur sighed. "Forget about it, Merlin," he'd shrugged, batting away Merlin's hands so he could eat. "You're to report to Gaius while I'm on patrol and attend to him until I call for you."

And that was that. Arthur departed to tend to his duties, leaving Merlin confused, but happy to be back to helping Gaius without the constant worry about Arthur.

That evening, Merlin had been concerned that perhaps Arthur had changed his mind, that he didn't want Merlin in his bed any longer and that was why he'd been out of sorts that morning. Fortunately, as soon as he sat Arthur down to remove his boots, Arthur reached up to cup his face, tugging him forward to perch on his lap.

It wasn't until the next morning that he discovered what had bothered Arthur. He woke at dawn, when the sunlight shone through the curtains he'd forgotten to close, and made to get out of bed when Arthur's hand curled around his wrist.

"Where'goin'?" The blonde murmured, using the hand he'd captured to drag Merlin back to him.

Merlin blinked sleepily. "What, you don't want breakfast anymore?"

"Mmm, later." Arthur rolled, pinning Merlin under him and nuzzling into his neck. "Sleep now," he said against his skin.

Merlin grinned, threading his free hand through Arthur's hair and magicking the curtains closed. "'Kay."

When the birds started chirping (only a few candlemarks later, but sleep was sleep and every second counted), Arthur forced himself out of bed and sent Merlin to get them food. After that, they fell into a routine, waking up together, departing to their own respective duties, meeting up later to either train with the knights and polish armor or save Camelot, depending on what day of the week it was.

When they went hunting, it was hard to remember that Merlin wasn't technically supposed to be sleeping with Arthur. Gaius knew, of course, but they'd rather the rest of Camelot didn't have any evidence. The rumor mill was cruel enough when it had no legs to stand on. It was bad enough that the cooks and maids condemned his closeness to Arthur. He didn't really want to find out what would happen if people knew how close they actually were.

It wasn't as if Merlin and Arthur had slept very far from each other before, but he'd never been more conscious of the space between them than he was the next time Arthur dragged him hunting with the Knights.

"We'll go hunting alone sometime," Arthur reassured him later as he helped Merlin wash the dirt and mud off of them. Arthur's bathtub wasn't made for two people, but the luxury royalty afforded left them quite comfortable. It helped that they didn't particularly mind being pressed up against each other.

"Fancy connecting with nature, do you?"

Arthur snorted. "We could sleep in. As long as we brought back a nice catch, my father wouldn't care how late we return."

"Really?" Merlin hummed, scrubbing at Arthur's scalp. "That might be fun."

Arthur groaned, leaning into Merlin's surprisingly strong fingers. "And if you are so inclined as to 'commune with nature', I suppose that could be arranged. I understand you sorcerer types are into that sort of thing."

"Know a lot about these sorcerer types, do you?"

"Know a fair bit about one, yeah. Can't say the rest matter terribly much."

Merlin's eyes widened, a blush racing up his cheeks. "I...suppose that's all right, then. After all, a fair amount of them keep trying to kill you. Lucky you've got me looking after you, really."

"'Suppose I must be," Arthur murmured, half a smile tugging at his lips as Merlin blushed darker. It was definitely worth not hiding behind his pride to see Merlin react like that.


End file.
